Two-wheel vehicles usually have a side stand mounted on the left-hand side to support the vehicle when parked; the side stand then folds upward against the frame for travel. When a side stand is inadvertently left down in a parking position during travel, contact of the side stand with the ground, e.g., during a left-hand turn, can result in loss of control of the vehicle and serious injury to the rider(s). To avoid this error, motorized two-wheel vehicles are often equipped with a sensor to detect when the side stand is properly stowed prior to travel. The signal received from the side-stand sensor can be informative only or can be used, for instance, to prevent the vehicle from operating when the side stand is down.
Sensors currently used to detect the position of the side stand are magnetic sensors, such as Reed switches and Hall elements. Use of these sensors requires mounting a target, e.g., rare earth magnets and magnet holders, on the side stand, while the Reed switch or Hall element is mounted to the frame of the vehicle. Both the magnets and the sensors that recognize their presence are sensitive to wear and tear; particularly when the part is mounted to the moving side stand, as the magnets generally are. Loss of magnet results, at a minimum, in the side stand sensor being ineffective, which as previously noted, may cause loss of control of the vehicle or injuries to the rider if the side stand is not properly stowed. Some two-wheel vehicles may have a feature that does not allow the vehicle to start if the side stand is not properly stowed. As loss of magnet makes the entire side stand sensor assembly non-functional, the user may need to buy an entire sensor assembly again, which adds to cost and vehicle down time.